I Don't Need You
by Chicken Nugget 101
Summary: .Hiatus. Six years after Spirited Away, Chihiro is now a sixteen year old girl in high school, not remembering that she had ever visted the Spirit World. However, her experience seems to haunt her every thought, refusing to let her forget.
1. Prologue

A/N: A story that I came up with one day. After watching Spirited Away, my fingers had been itching to write a story after that major writer's block I had experience a couple of weeks ago. I plan to finish this, because I have thought out the plotline from start to finish. Let's just hope school doesn't interfere too much with it! Story is based loosely (very loosely, like two or three lines from the song, I think) on Bad Boy from Cascada.

No, this is not the Sakura from Cardcaptor Sakura, Tsusbasa Reservoir Chronicles, Naruto, Sakura Wars, or whatever shows have a Sakura in it. Sakura is based on my friend since 2nd grade, Andrea, who is currently in the hospital after getting into a car accident a few days ago.

Title is **supposed** to read **I (Don't) Need You** but apparently, you can't use parenthesis in the title. Poopy. P

Disclaimer: I do not own Spirited Away. It is as plain and simple as that. If I did, I certainly wouldn't be writing on I'd be making my stories into television shows. :)

**I (Don't) Need You**

"Shut up Sakura! I am not stuck in a rut!" Delicate alabaster hands folded themselves neatly on a bright orange, yellow and white cheerleading skirt. A small pout graced the features of the speaker as she stared at the setting sun's rays lavish the grass at the horizon.

Her finger rose to scratch the tip of her nose and she scrunched her face in displeasure as she realized that the itch was coming from the inside of her nose. She quickly allowed herself to fall back into her purple sheets in defeat.

"Well then, my dear Chihiro, why do you refuse to immerse yourself in the oh-so wonderful world of dating?" A shadow loomed over Chihiro's face as emerald eyes met dark chocolate orbs. Sakura raised a flawlessly shaped eyebrow in expectation. When she realized that she wasn't going to get an answer, she quickly backed off and turned around. She scanned the room and tilted her head to the left, lost in thought.

Within half a minute, she marched over to the almond vanity table, and opened the middle left drawer forcefully. All Chihiro could do was eye her cautiously, too tired to force her body off the bed.

Upon realizing that Sakura intended to go rummaging through her things, Chihiro placed a hand on her nightstand and used it as support to sit upright. She smoothed out her skirt and twisted her body so her legs fell right behind her nightstand.

"Sakura? What are you doing? Why are looking through my underwear drawer?" Chihiro yawned out as she tapped her fingers on the wooden table. Each nail was perfectly trimmed and painted a translucent white with an intricately painted jade green design on them. Her favorite colors.

Her already rosy cheeks turned an ever darker shade of red as a lacy black bra decided to set itself upon her head. Her whole face immediately flushed with blood and she could feel herself emitting a large amount of body heat from the embarrassment.

"Aha!" Sakura yelled out in triumph as she pulled out a ratty and worn notebook from the large mountain of unfolded undergarments.

She twirled around and stuck the notebook in front of her and waved it victoriously. She stopped and squealed in delight as Chihiro tried to remove the bra from her russet locks in vain. Unfortunately, the bra hooks proved to a worthy adversary against her awkward fingers.

"Look Chihiro!" She approached her, spun around once, and fell down on the bed, "It's the reason to all of your suffering!"

She violently threw the notebook on the bed, already opened to the desired page. Chihiro eyed it wearily, reading the words she had written not too long ago.

"_Will we meet again sometime?" Small hands fidgeted slightly in his larger one. Sen stared up into his jade orbs, a frown of realization spread across her face. The wind toyed with their hair, swishing it around in their face._

"_Sure we will." Haku smiled gently at her. But he knew that they never would again. A human in their world was too risky, and the trouble he faced to ensure her safety was exhausting._

"_Promise?" She shivered slightly as the wind penetrated through her clothes, nipping gently at her skin. Her voice was filled with such hope, it broke Haku's heart to have to say goodbye or to lie to her._

"_Promise." Sen's heart fluttered in her chest._

"_Now go. And remember not to look back." His hand gently beckoned her out of their world. Sen stepped confidently onto the lush grass. Her hand slid away slowly from him, and the warmth she experienced was immediately gone. Instead, it was replaced by the nipping coldness of the wind. _

_Nihiyagami Kohaku Nushi. Haku was going to be alright. He had his name back. He didn't need her anymore..._

Chihiro just stared at her in question, "It's a story that I had written for fun. So what?" Sakura just shook her head as her chestnut bangs swept gently against her ivory skin. She pointed an accusing finger at the page.

"But you see Chihiro, you have been working on this story for nearly four years! It's all based around that dream that you had six years ago! Get over it!" Chihiro shrugged nonchalantly at her friend, concealing her annoyance. People had written stories that took even longer than that before. She didn't see the problem. Instead she stood up, placed her leg on the nightstand and stretched out.

"Chihiro! Listen to me! You need to stop chasing after your dream boy... Even if he was real... He's probably long forgotten about you now..." Chihiro felt a twisting feeling her stomach as Sakura's words slipped remorsefully out of her mouth. She ignored it.

"Look Chihiro... I'm not stupid. This Sen girl, the protagonist in your story... She's you, isn't she? I mean... You imagine that that was you in her place, don't you? You're trying to experience love through your story, aren't you?"

Chihiro just wanted to turn around and tell her that she was right. Secretly, she wished that it wasn't all a dream. Why the reason why she was afraid to get involved with anyone was the fact that _he_ might come back like he said he would, and she'd have to experience heartbreak.

But instead, she mentally laughed at herself. After all, it was just a dream she had had when she was ten. She wasn't the main character, and Haku had harbored secret feeling for Sen, not Chihiro.

But most of all, she didn't want to be told that none of it was real, and have to experience that deep, empty feeling in her stomach again like when she had to go to her father's funeral.

That he wasn't real, even though she knew that everyone was right. He wasn't real. So she decided to lie her butt off.

"Sakura, I have no idea what you're talking about... I write because I want to get my words down on paper," She shrugged, frowning, "Writing isn't going to hinder my ability to find myself a boyfriend. I just simply don't need one in my life now, because it's hectic enough. I don't need a boyfriend to further complicate things."

Sakura bit her lower lip, obviously displeased with her friend's answer, "Ok... Then at least answer me this...," Chihiro nodded for her to continue, "Why do you insist on naming the boy in your story after the river that you almost drowned in sixteen years ago? Why do you call out his name out in your sleep every time I spend the night?"

Chihiro scrunched her eyebrows together in thought. She honestly had no idea why she did. She honestly had no idea why the dream was imprinted in her memory, when she usually forgot everything prior to waking up.

And most of all, she honestly had no idea why her heart would skip a beat every time she thought about him.

--------

A/N: Don't forget to review! Reviews make me happy and more likely to post. Constructive Criticism is the best tool to give a writer, and I would greatly appreciate it. Flames are not appreciated. If you think you've wasted enough time reading my story, don't waste anymore by telling me my story sucks.

Just so you know I was originally going to have Chihiro be an artist, but that idea has been used in a few stories that I have read so...


	2. Just Another Day

A/N: Hehe, this chapter is kinda slow. It's just basically a filler, so you kinda get to know a bit more about Chihiro and her life before I jump into the major plot.

Sorry I haven't written for a while. Finals Suck. Starting new classes equals major homework. One of the cons of being on block schedule in high school. :(

No, Chihiro is not a cheerleader. I just don't know what you call those ruffly skirts so I decided to call it a cheerleading skirt so yeah...

Cecelia has caught me! Yeah, I know I said that Sakura is based on a friend of mine, but she does bare a remarkable resemblance to Sakura from CCS, so yes, it is the Sakura from there, more or less. But the fact that she came from that show has very little significance to my story. So yea... I'm a liar. -.-; She just looks like her, I say. :)

**Just Another Day**

Chihiro rubbed her temples in frustration. Sakura did not feel like shutting up today. And today was Monday morning. A very horrible Monday morning.

"So, Chihiro, when Yamato and I went to the park the other day, we got kicked off because it is apparently illegal to..." Chihiro continued to walk with Sakura to their destination, trying to tune Sakura and her incessant talking out. She frowned slightly as she realized her friend was incapable of keeping her mouth shut this morning.

Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. She had this horrible feeling in her stomach, as if someone was moving around her insides. It was the same nervous feeling she got about finals. However, there was something different about it, but Chihiro couldn't quite put her finger on it...

She sighed in relief as she saw their high school come into view. She could finally get away from Sakura until lunch. She really needed some time to think.

She loved Sakura; she really did, but sometimes... She just needed to learn how to shut up.

The brunette smiled at her friend as they exchanged hugs and went off to their first period.

Sakura lucked out. She had Basic Art first period. Chihiro... Well... Chihiro was not so lucky.

----

Chihiro's face flushed red as she continued to pump her legs, refusing to stop for a little walking break. The cold air nipped at her exposed flesh, and the chilly wind penetrated through her shirt and short fibers. She kept her focus right in front of her, glancing longingly at the water fountain every few seconds.

"Twelve." Chihiro said breathlessly, as she passed her Physical Education teacher. Mrs. Urase acknowledged her with a slight nod, and Chihiro continued to jog. Track laps were the worst part of the day, and she was sick of seeing the same ugly brick red path paved for them.

However, despite the horrible mood she was in, she couldn't resist the urge to smile as a figure jogged up beside her and poked her lightly in the side. She shook her head in mock exasperation and turned her head to her jogging partner.

"Yamato..." She said teasingly. Yamato flashed a charming smile at her, exposing his flawless teeth. Chihiro was a tad jealous. Yamato never had to go through two-and-a-half years of braces to correct his top row of teeth. So what if she had a slight overbite?

"Chihiro, you've heard about the upcoming Nadeshiko Festival, haven't you?" Chihiro adjusted her pace to a slower jog. She had to accommodate for the oxygen loss she was going to have. She simply nodded her head, already knowing what to expect.

"Well, I'd like to escort my two favorite girls to it, so... Chihiro Ogino, would you care to take my arm to this wonderful event?" Yamato stuck his arm out, waiting for her to entwine their arms together.

Chihiro giggled slightly at some of the girls who stared incredulously at Yamato while they jogged lightly passed them. Either they were busy wondering why Yamato wasted his time asking his best friend to the festival, or they were dumbstruck by his golden hair and admittingly good looks.

She liked to think it was both.

After a couple seconds of contemplating his question, she wrapped her arm around Yamato's and answered with a definite 'yes'.

Bad move.

As soon as she had, Yamato broke out into a full sprint, causing Chihiro to trip over her shoes and the little texture that the track lap field had. He continued to drag her around, and Chihiro had some difficulty catching her breath due to the sudden change in pace. She fumbled with every other step, desperately trying to loosen Yamato's grip on her hand.

It didn't work.

"Twelve and twenty-five." He stated effortlessly as they passed their PE teacher. She stared at them quizzically as he continued to drag his friend by the hand. Chihiro flailed her loose hand wildly, trying to gain some leverage over Yamato. However, her face flushed a tomato red as she realized she must've looked ridiculous in the current state she was in. So, instead, she continued to allow her friend to pull her around.

Young kids in love were always a complicated scenario. Something that Mrs. Urase couldn't quite comprehend herself. After all, she didn't have her first boyfriend until she was twenty-two.

---

Chihiro slipped her regular school shirt over her head, and adjusted its collar in the locker room. She slowly zipped her green and black plaid skirt up, and pulled up her knee high socks, taking care in making sure she folded the tops evenly on both sides. She placed on her black, one-inch heel shoes, fumbling slightly with the clasp.

After doing so, she picked up her PE shorts and shirt and folded them neatly, shorts first, then shirt. She positioned them in her locker gently, moving the binder inside to the left. She placed her tennis shoes on her clothes and smiled. She still had three minutes left.

Satisfied, she got up and made her way to the locker room mirror to brush her hair.

"Chihiro!" She turned her head to the side to see a raven-haired girl walk up beside her. Chihiro lent her brush silently to Rumi Ijini, and smiled as she graced her with a silent thank-you.

Rumi was a sweet girl, but she had such a horrible temper when she was mad. Chihiro guessed the reason why she liked her so much was not because of her kind demeanor, but because of the fact that she had the same name as her best friend when she was growing up.

She had a slight resemblance to the Rumi in her past as well. It was rare to see a woman of Japanese descent with true, jet-black hair. It was one, out of a few things, that both Rumi's had in common.

"So, Chihiro... You and Yamato... Do you guys have anything going on?" Chihiro smiled politely at her, realizing where their conversation was going.

"No Rumi. We're just friends. I've told you that before." As if in relief, Rumi smiled back, and handed the brush to Chihiro. She acknowledged Chihiro's answers with a slight bow and turned to leave, leaving the brunette by herself near the restroom stalls.

Chihiro shrugged nonchalantly and combed her hair back. She pulled out a violet hair tie and put her hair in a ponytail, leaving a few strands of hair to frame her face.

---

Chihiro giggled as Yamato asked Sakura to the Nadeshiko Festival. Sakura was... ecstatic, to say the least.

They continued to chat about their plans for the festival for a couple of minutes before Sakura stated she had to go home before her mother discovered the unwashed dishes in their sink. Yamato gave each girl a light peck on the check as they bid their farewells.

"So... Chihiro... I can tell that Yamato really like you..." Sakura trailed off airily, a smile tugging at her lips, "So... I think you should go out with him." She shrugged her shoulders as the two came closer to their destination with each step.

Chihiro simply glanced at her, and shook out her reply. She really did not need a boyfriend right now. Her brunette friend let out a sigh of defeat, tired of repeating the same conversation every afternoon. She simply admitted her downfall as she wordlessly turned onto her street.

They waved to each other silently, and Chihiro merely stood at her current location. She eyed Sakura until she disappeared behind the corner. Afterwards, she walked to her house in silence. The rest of today would be really quiet.

---

"Goodnight Dad." Chihiro stated quietly as she lightly placed a kiss on her father's photo on her nightstand. She took off her hair tie and slipped it on her wrist. Something that she had recently started to do over the past few weeks.

She turned off her lamp and simply lay in bed, unmoving. Her body refused to give into the opiates of sleep, and a million things were running through her mind, refusing to let the darkness subdue it.

She had a horrible gut wrenching feeling and she refused to rest until she figured out what was causing her such grievances.

But sleep is inevitable, no matter whom you are.

"_Sen... I need you..." The light flicked on and off, casting a light shadow over Chihiro. Petrified, she refused to speak, moving her eyes from left to right to find the source of the voice. The voice was feminine. Old and full of wisdom... It came from a woman who had her fair share of cigarettes._

"_Chihiro... Come back..." She imagined this one belonged to a powerful being. It was rich and held power, but it did not have the same ancient wisdom implanted into it as the previous voice had. Chihiro noticed a light from the corner of her eye and she whipped her head to face the source of it. She caught a quick glance at face, but it was gone._

_She opened her mouth to speak, but could not will the words to come out._

"_Sen... Please... It's not going to be open for much longer... Come soon... Chihiro... We need you..." She spotted a shadow looming over her head and immediately turned around. But the source of the shadow vanished._

_Desperate for answers, she felt her voice come back to her._

"_What's not going to be open for much longer?" She grabbed her throat in surprise. The voice that came out of it was not her voice. It was that of a little girl, sweet and filled with many unanswered questions about life._

"_The gate..." The woman's old voice croaked out. What happened to the man's?_

"_The gate Chihiro! You have to make it back here soon!" The voice urged her. What was she talking about? Two shadowed hand grabbed her shoulders, shaking them vigorously. As soon as they started, a loud ringing sound emitted from all around the dark crevices of the room. _

_Running away from the hands, Chihiro clutched her ears to prevent the noise from entering her brain. The flickering light followed her, until it slowly went out. _

_Chihiro could feel herself falling, and she screamed. A shrill, loud and terrified scream._

"_It's no use... We lost her..." The rich and powerful man's voice was the last thing she heard aside from her own shrieks._

A hand blindly reached out on the nightstand, searching for the device that disturbed its owner from her sleep. She grabbed her cell phone, still ringing, and sat up straight. _Text Message._ The screen glowed fiercely in the dark, and Chihiro felt slightly blinded by it.

"Dumb phone..." Chihiro opened it, happy to silence the ringing bells. She silently cursed at whomever though it was a good idea to send a text message at such an early time in the morning. She rubbed her eyes, still sleepy, and took a glance at her cell phone screen.

_4:37 AM._

She moaned in exasperation and she buried her head in her purple pillow, willing sleep to befall her again.

Damn... And it was only Tuesday.

-------

A/N: Well, I hope you guys like it. :) Took me a while to write. Don't worry. There will be some Chihiro/Kohaku romance late on. I just need to get to it.

I've been in 'depression' as of late because my download of the Spirited Away movie pissed me off. I was getting it off of Limewire to watch again, and lo-and-behold, I get to 73 and then Limewire decides to go dumb and change 'the file to save it in' just because I haven't continued the download in like, a week. I've tried to change 'the save it in this folder' thing back, but it starts off at 0 every time. :(

And I have stupid AOL dialup so... you know how it is.

Don't forget to review to make me feel better:)


	3. Under the Weather

A/N: Blah. I am in a horrible and depressed mood. My flat iron broke, and my monkey head I made in art exploded in the oven. I woke up this morning and my right eye was all swollen with fluids so it hurt to open it. (You guys are lucky I have a working left eye and I can touch-type!) I have a B+ in Journalism and all is not well. :( Bleh. I'm sad.

On Another Note: This chapter is still pretty slow, I'm just developing the characters more before we have to say goodbye to them. (When Chihiro goes to the Spirit World) We jump into the plot line, I believe, next chapter, unless I decide to have more cryptic dream chapters. :D

After that, Chihiro will reunite with her beloved Haku shortly. So don't get mad at me for his prolonged absence. :)

**Under the Weather**

Sunlight crept into the small white room, leaving vertical stripes of light on Chihiro's otherwise, flawless skin. She turned to her side and made a small groaning sound, obviously finding displeasure in the position she turn to.

Sleepy eyes fluttered open slowly as the brilliant sunlight made direct contact with her closed eyelids. She shut them closed as the sun burned her eyes and made them water slightly. She rubbed her eyes furiously as she sat upright in her bed. Chihiro opened her mouth and let out a big yawn as she read her alarm clock.

_10:47 PM _

Her yawn grew louder as she stretched out. She closed her mouth, still looking slightly dazed. She began to move her mouth up and down, noisily smacking her lips together. Her hair was in a disoriented mess, pieces of hair sticking up, and some lying across her face, while the majority was in a big, fuzzy knot.

She moved her big purple comforter to the side and swung her legs over to the other side to try and escape the urge to close her eyes and sleep again. She slowly got up, legs wobbling slightly.

She exited her room, not bothering to mess with her physical features at the moment. As soon as she shut the door, the delicious aroma of food filled her senses. As if being dragged by the smell, her feet led her to the kitchen.

Her mother could be found there, pouring orange juice into a cup, and placing a plate filled with food on it.

Chihiro took a quick glance at the plate, noting her mother made her two Sunnyside-Up eggs, a piece of toast, and two chocolate chip pancakes smothered in thick, brown, sugary syrup.

She strolled up to her mother and placed a kiss on her cheek, silently thanking her for the food. She gently placed her hands on her mother's shoulder, and then placed her head delicately on her hands. Her mother acknowledged her by patting her hand forlornly.

Chihiro could tell that Yuuko Ogino really missed her husband.

She sat back down into her chair and ate her food in silence. She poked at the egg yolks until they burst and she swirled ugly yellow patterns with her fork. She contaminated her pancakes with the thick yellow liquid, but she ate them anyways. She took a sip of her orange juice every now and then, swishing it around her mouth to remove the fuzzy slippers feeling on her teeth.

After finishing, she brought them over to the sink and rinsed the dishes off. She wiped it dry and placed it into the oak cabinets.

_11:31AM_

She found her mother lying on the couch fast asleep. Her mother didn't really like to do much anymore. She mostly slept and did her motherly duties. She cooked and she went to work. She never wanted to go shopping or go on a picnic anymore so Chihiro left her alone most of the time. She didn't want to contribute to anymore of her pain.

---

Chihiro smiled satisfactorily at her image in the mirror. Her hair was down and it cascaded to the middle of her back, the russet locks shining under the fluorescent lighting. She scratched her eyebrow and she admired her translucent white and jade green nails in the mirror. It shone in the light just like a dragon scale. She flashed a smile at herself before she left the bathroom.

Before leaving the house, Chihiro approached her mother again and placed a kiss on her cheek. Yuuko didn't stir from her slumber.

She scribbled a note on a piece of paper.

_Mom, Sakura and I are going shopping for clothing for the Nadeshiko Festival. Then we're going out for ice cream with Yamato. Be back later!_

She left the house, sliding the door close gently to not disturb her mother.

---

"Chihiro! This is the most perfect place to buy your kimono!" Sakura squealed in absolute delight as her emerald eyes scanned over the entire store.

There were rows upon rows of clothing, from formal to traditional to casual. The outfits on clearance were placed on a shiny steel rack, while the more expensive ones were hung up near the top of the store, hanging gaily above the rest. Sakura went starry-eyed as she spun around in enjoyment, hands pressed firmly upon her cheeks.

A large sweat drop formed on Chihiro's head from her friend's ludicrous behavior but she chose to say nothing. She had gotten used to it, but sometimes, the brunette could be a little much.

Like a chubby child in a candy store, Sakura started to run up and down the aisles, hands running through the garments as it raced past them. She stopped every now and then, taking a kimono from the rack and pressing it against her body. When she decided that it was unworthy for her, she placed it quickly back in the rack, and continued her search.

Chihiro trailed far behind her, taking in her scenery more slowly. She took a look at everything, deciding that some of the kimonos were absurdly colored. Who would wear a sage green and squash orange kimono with a brilliant purple sash? She took a quick glance at the price tag and smiled. That's what she thought.

Chihiro turned to her friend to tell her of her absurd discovery, but her friend had managed to find a more fantastic discovery.

Sakura came out from behind the rack, clad in a vibrant orange kimono. She wore a snow white shirt underneath, and to finish it off was a red satin sash tied in a perfect bow on the back. On the bottom of the kimono were silhouettes of butterflies colored the same red as the sash. The sleeves were long and modest and her hands barely poked out from the mass of fabric. Sakura bore a smile on her face, obviously pleased with her discovery.

"You look nice." Chihiro smiled softly at her friend, surprised that she had found a dress so quickly. Usually, they spent hours in a store trying to find the perfect dress for her because, hey, shopping was a sport too!

"And Chihiro... I found one for you as well!" Sakura flashed her a toothy grin and grabbed a hold of her friend's hand. She dragged her to the dressing room, shivering in delight at her find.

---

"I'm surprised; you guys actually got here on time." Yamato smirked at them as they sat underneath a large shady tree. Sakura swirled her ice cream around in her cup and she returned the smile. She took a generous scoop of her vanilla ice cream and placed it in her mouth, leaving in the spoon. She replied with a muffled _I know_.

Chihiro nodded in agreement, not bothering to touch her chocolate and vanilla ice cream. She always liked the split, but she did not feel up to eating any today. She felt sick.

"Chihiro... Are you okay?" Yamato's soothing voice pierced through her thoughts, and his clear blue eyes stared at her in concern. She gave a meek nod. She knew he knew she wasn't alright, but he chose not to say anything. He eyed her for a second longer before he turned his attention back to Sakura.

Sakura gazed at her in worry but said nothing either. Chihiro had been acting weird this past week... She chose to believe she was PMSing, but she knew that wasn't it. Instead of questioning her, she continued her conversation with Yamato, glancing at her brunette friend every now and then.

Chihiro didn't feel good... She had a nagging feeling in her stomach. Like she had forgotten something important. But all she could remember was a voice... An old woman who had something important to tell her.

She stared at her ice cream, lost in thought. The line that separated the vanilla and chocolate ice cream become undefined as it slowly melted into each other...

"_Sen... The border to the Spirit World will close after the Winter Solstice... You have till midnight that night to cross..."_

_Chihiro listened to the information dazedly in her head. She felt like she was going to vomit._

"_Sen... You must cross while the line to our world is still indeterminate! It is very important Sen!" A large protruding nose poked at Chihiro side. She stared in stupor at the large head that was clad in gaudy jewelry. Her eyes hurt from the bright colors so she shut them closed and turned away._

"_Zeniba! What are you doing?!" A loud voice boomed through the room, furious. She could feel the nose retract from her being in surprise. Chihiro collapsed to the floor, the voice still reverberating through her head, leaving her a giant headache, "You can't use that kind of magic on her while she is conscious!"_

_The voice was smooth and masculine. Chihiro recognized it but her head hurt too much to tell where she'd heard it from._

"_Haku! You don't understand how long it took me to contact her without you! This is my chance! She'll remember what she's told when she's in a conscious state!" Chihiro's abdomen stirred, causing unpleasant feelings to surge through her body. Their argument served to make her feel worse._

"_A mortal is incapable of handling all that magical stress..." Chihiro could feel the presence leave her, "Their worldly state compensates for the large imbalance of their homeostasis by making them sick Zeniba! You could have killed her!" The voice died down and she went numb._

"Chihiro... Please wake up..." She could feel her body being shook slightly. She moaned in exasperation as her eyes fluttered open. She could feel her hair being stroked by calloused hands... Yamato.

"Zeniba... and Haku..." Her voice was weak and she coughed as she spluttered out the words. Yamato hushed her to silence as he continued to stroke her hair. Sakura placed herself next to him and grabbed a hold of Chihiro's hand in comfort. She leaned heavily against Yamato and sighed.

"She's being haunted by _them_ again Yamato... I don't know what we can do for her anymore..." Her voice was quiet. Chihiro heard her words, but it did not register in her brain. She only had one question in her mind.

"Sakura... When is the Winter Solstice?" Yamato and Sakura eyed her in surprise. Yamato decided to answer.

"It's the night of Nadeshiko Festival." Chihiro gave a small nod, the ill feeling from earlier returning to her.

---

A/N: Well I hope you like it! I updated faster because when I'm depressed, I type. When I have no homework to type, I write my stories. :)

Please review! See? Reviews _do_ make me update faster. :D


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